Social Security's Simple Fix Blocked by Politics

Excerpt

"One reason it might not be happening is that politics is not a logical process always," said Robert Bixby, the director of the Concord Coalition, a Washington-based group promoting an end to deficit spending.

Like Rivlin, Bixby said fixing Social Security is not complicated.

But Bixby said if you're trying to get elected, the last thing you need is an opponent running around telling voters you want to reduce benefits and raise taxes, which is exactly what most agree needs to be done to ensure Social Security's solvency.

"It's like an easy layup for a political campaign to say 'my opponent will take away your Medicare or my opponent wants to destroy Social Security,' " Bixby said.